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Right up there as one of the world's most recognised kitchen personalities,
multi-Michelin-starred Chef Gordon Ramsay needs no introduction.
By Louise N.
Celebrity Chef
G o r d o n
R a m s ay }{
up close & Personal
T
he past decade has seen the
culinary world positively
explode with a new generation
of celebrity chefs and food
enthusiasts, and no doubt,
television chef Gordon Ramsay has plenty
to account for in pioneering today's food-
driven society.
He's the fiery television chef from a handful
of the world's most famous cooking series,
including MasterChef, MasterChef Junior,
Kitchen Nightmares and Hell’s Kitchen to
name just a few, whilst also maintaining
his reputation as the multi-Michelin-
starred chef-owner of a string of successful
restaurants across the globe, spanning the
UK, France, the US, Dubai, Singapore and
Hong Kong.
Ramsay's career first hit the headlines in
1993 when he helmed the kitchen as head
chef of Aubergine in London; a fine French
restaurant in the capital's swanky Chelsea
neighbourhood. Within three years of his
appointment, Aubergine was awarded two
Michelin stars, after which Ramsay left to
open his first wholly owned and namesake
restaurant, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, in
1998. Restaurant Gordon Ramsay quickly
received the most prestigious accolade in
the culinary world – three Michelin stars.
Today, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay is
London’s longest-running restaurant to
hold this award, and Ramsay is one of only
four chefs in the UK to maintain three
stars. He's continuing his reign with a
growing empire of 30 restaurants around
the world, most recently breaking into the
Asian market by bringing his Bread Street
Kitchen and London House brands to
Hong Kong and Singapore.
In between juggling his TV career
and domination of the culinary world,
Gordon talks perfectionism, the value of a
committed team and how his London-bred
restaurants are taking Asia by storm.
: You're one of the most recognised
celebrity chefs in the world, but what first
sparked your passion for cooking?
Gordon: Cooking wasn’t a tradition in
our family. My father didn’t approve, but I
remember coming home from school every
day and going to the kitchen to help my
mother. She inspired me and helped me
discover my love for food and cooking.
: So how did you go from a young boy
in your mother's kitchen, to the superstar
chef you are today?
Gordon: I wanted to be a soccer star, but
when I got injured and could no longer
play, cooking became my escape route.
I left home at 16 and worked as a part-
time dishwasher, spent a year in cooking
school and became a chef for a small-town
restaurant in England. I moved to London
and worked my way up, working with some
of the greatest chefs in the world like Marco
Pierre White, Joël Robuchon and Guy
Savoy.
I’ve been committed and passionate ever
since I found my love for food and cooking.
Every day I continue to push and challenge
myself. When I was working my way up, I
looked to chefs like Joël Robuchon, and for
me, it's important to walk the walk the way
he does. So, when I think of those who look
up to me, I hope they see the same.
: You now run 30 restaurants across
the world – how do you ensure each one is
always at the head of its game?
Gordon: I always have and always will take
opening a restaurant seriously, so whether
it was my first one or the next, I'm in
100%. I’m a perfectionist and notoriously
demanding about getting things right and
that will never change. With so much
happening on a global scale, I, of course,
can’t be everywhere at once, which is why
I’m very lucky to have some of the greatest
chefs working as a team to curate each menu
to suit each market, and who know what to
do to bring a new restaurant to life.
: Talking of which, you've recently
brought your Bread Street Kitchen
brand to Asia. What made you choose
Singapore?

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Gordon: Bread Street Kitchen is incredibly
successful back home in England and we
felt it was the perfect concept to bring to
Singapore. It’s a great new destination for
a relaxed evening with friends, lunch with
colleagues or a family brunch. Singapore
is steeped in culture and part of that is its
amazing food. I hope Bread Street Kitchen
& Bar will only add to that.
: What can we expect to find on the
menu?
Gordon: The restaurant serves a British
European menu featuring dishes from the
original Bread Street Kitchen in London,
using specially imported British artisanal
products, but with local Singaporean
influences as well as local products. All our
restaurants, not just Bread Street Kitchen,
reflect my passion for serving the best food,
be it fine dining or casual fare. In Singapore,
we’ve brought in Executive Chef Sabrina
Stillhart and General Manager John
Quetier. We deliver the creativity of dishes
and the level of service customers expect.
: What's something surprising about
the restaurant that diners may not realise?
Gordon: That Bread Street Kitchen isn’t
fine dining – it’s much more casual. It’s
still stunning, good quality food, but more
relaxed.
: You must be one of the hardest
working chefs in the world. What
motivates you to keep going? Do you ever
get to just sit back and put your feet up?
Gordon: In this industry you need to be
patient, passionate about cooking and
dedicated. Cooking at this level is so
intense. There was a time when I needed
to take a break. It was after getting my a**
kicked in Paris when I was training at some
of the best restaurants in the world. So I
took some time off, got aboard a boat, and
was a private chef on a yacht for six months.
It allowed me to regenerate and I needed
that. It’s ok to take a break.
: So what's been one of your proudest
moments to date?
Gordon: Professionally, it was winning
my third Michelin Star. Personally, it was
being blessed with four amazing kids and
a fantastic wife. I’m a total softie when it
comes to my family.
: So what's next for celebrity chef
Gordon Ramsay?
Gordon: Continuing to stay focused and
driven by the mantra “work hard, play
hard”. Always developing the business and
of course, spending time with the family.
We’re also looking at an exciting global
expansion in the coming year for Bread
Street Kitchen, so watch this space!
(www.gordonramsay.com)
“I’m a perfectionist and
notoriously demanding about
getting things right”
English Sunday Roast Cosmopolitan BSK Burger, Monterey Jack Cheese, Spicy Sriracha Mayo • 600 g chicken wings
• 125 g plain flour
For the marinade
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• ¼ tsp ground turmeric
• 2 tsp paprika
• ½ tsp garam masala
• 10 g onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1 egg
• ½ tsp Dijon mustard
• 5ml vegetable oil
For the tamarind sauce
• 80 g dried tamarind, soaked in 500ml water
• 1 tsp dried chili
• 25 g fennel seeds
• 25 g cumin seeds
• 5 g coriander seeds
• 1 tsp black peppercorns 1 large
white onion, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 5 bay leaves
• 30 g tomato paste
• 60 g brown sugar
• 75 g honey
• 60 g ketchup
• 150 ml Worcestershire sauce
• 40 ml white wine vinegar
• 1.75 L chicken stock
• 50 g fresh coriander, leaves picked and
chopped and stalks reserved
• Garnish of spring onions, chopped
• Salt to taste
METHOD
1. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade
together in a large bowl and add the chicken
wings. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge
for at least 1 hour but preferably overnight.
2. While the chicken wings are marinating,
make the tamarind sauce. Start by toasting the
spices: place a dry frying pan over a medium
heat and when it’s hot, add the chilies, fennel
seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and black
peppercorns. Heat the spices for 1-2 minutes to
release the aromas then crush them to a coarse
powder in a pestle and mortar or spice grinder.
3. Place a saucepan over a medium heat and add
some vegetable oil. When hot, sweat the sliced
onion with the garlic and bay leaves until soft.
4. Add the spices to the pan and allow to cook for
5 minutes. Then add the tomato paste and cook
out for a further 3 minutes.
5. Add the sugar, honey, ketchup, Worcestershire
sauce, vinegar, chicken stock and coriander
stalks to the pan and stir to combine.
6. Drain the softened tamarind, discarding
the liquid, and add it to the pan.
7. Allow the ingredients to cook for 1-2 hours so
that all the spices come together and infuse the
sauce.
8. Pass the sauce through a fine sieve, discarding
the pulp, and pour into a clean saucepan. Place
the pan over a medium heat and reduce the
sauce until it coats the back of a spoon. Season
with salt and keep warm.
9. After the wings have had time to marinate,
remove them from the fridge and coat each
wing in flour making sure you tap off any
excess.
10. The wings are now ready to be fried in a deep
fat fryer preheated to 190ºC for around 4-6
minutes until golden all over. Alternatively, the
wings can be shallow fried or roasted in an oven
preheated to 190ºC for 20 minutes.
11. Once the chicken wings have been cooked,
coat the wings in the tamarind sauce and
garnish with freshly chopped spring onions and
coriander leaves before serving.
TAMARIND–Spiced
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
Chicken Wings
From Bread Street Kitchen